Effectiveness of Fresh to You, a Discount Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Market in Low-Income Neighborhoods, on Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Consumption, Rhode Island, 2010–2011

Details

• Journal Article:
  Preventing Chronic Disease (PCD)
• Personal Author:
  Gorham, Gemma ; Dulin-Keita, Akilah ; Risica, Patricia Markham ; Mello, Jennifer ; Papandonatos, George ; Nunn, Amy ; Gorham, Sara ; Roberson, Mya ; Gans, Kim M.
• Description:
  Introduction ; Eating fruits and vegetables is associated with lowered risk for many chronic diseases. However, most Americans, especially members of low-income and minority populations, do not eat adequate amounts. Fresh to You is a public–private partnership program that brings discount fresh produce markets into low-income neighborhoods. We conducted a mixed-methods evaluation of Fresh to You to assess the effect of the program on children’s consumption of fruits and vegetables. ; Methods ; A local produce distributor brought the Fresh to You markets to 6 community organizations serving low-income families in Rhode Island. The markets, held weekly for 5 months at each site, sold fresh produce at below-retail prices. Parents (N = 480) of children aged 3 to 13 years were recruited at the markets to participate in a 5-month cohort study. The primary outcome was change in children’s fruit and vegetable intake, measured by a validated screener. We also conducted postintervention focus groups at each site with parents and qualitative interviews with site contacts to collect feedback about Fresh to You. ; Results ; From baseline to 5 months, there was a significant increase in children’s daily fruit and vegetable consumption of 0.48 cups (t = 4.16, P < .001). Data from follow-up parent surveys, focus groups, and site contact interviews provided positive feedback about Fresh to You and recommendations for improvement. ; Conclusion ; Fresh to You was effective at increasing consumption of fruits and vegetables among racially and ethnically diverse low-income children aged 3 to 13 years whose parents shopped at the markets. The intervention could serve as a model program for replication in other cities. Refinements and a more rigorous evaluation are needed.
• Subjects:
  • Adolescent
  • Child
  • Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena
  • Child, Preschool
  • Cohort Studies
  • Commerce
  • Energy Intake
  • Environment Design
  • Feedback
  • Female
  More +
• Source:
  Prev Chronic Dis. 12.
• DOI:
  http://dx.doi.org/10.5888/pcd12.140583
• ISSN:
  1545-1151
• Pubmed ID:
  26469949
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC4611858
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Rhode Island
• Volume:
  12
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/36132/cdc_36132_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 310.26 KB]
• Collection(s):
  Preventing Chronic Disease
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:5a75529ed90bf2b3c2849836f1b4b9833e0538e161ff3d160f9637e921c6f5accac13ec68e1270b03e2a986fa22223b13e01c7ffa86e32f629a28bbd5e6c8f8a